The Cradle Will Fall
by Katia-chan
Summary: If the injuries the children of Souma house had suffered were just bumps and bruises, maybe someone could have made it better, but some hurts are too deep to heal with a kind word and a kiss.
1. Rockabye Baby

The Cradle Will Fall

By Katia-chan

A/N: Because I cannot write chapters, I will write continuous drabbles dammit!

This is the result of too much time plotting and avoiding the large piles of homework I have. It's all college's fault I tell you!

The multiple drabble thing is a style that Adi88 has made me fall very much in love with from all her wonderful fanfiction. I am borrowing the style, and will attempt to pull it off half as well as she does.

This series is tied in with my Okasan series, which is still in the. . . rather lengthy process of being written.

Me, procrastinate, what?

Disclaimer: Go ahead, laugh at my pain. I dare you.

Enjoy!

XXX

Rock-a-bye baby, on the tree top

When the wind blows, the cradle will rock

When the bough breaks, the cradle will fall

And down will come baby, cradle and all

Rin plays in the grass outside of their house. It is a beautiful sunny day and she is a beautiful sunny little girl. It's a gorgeous day and she knows it is perfect, because what else would it be? She does not have to go to school; she has all day to play.

She climbs the small tree and feels like she can fly. Her hair floats everywhere and she waves happily at the house.

The small low branch snaps and she tumbles to the ground. There is blood on her hands, blood on her knees, and she screams because there is a lot of it, and the already forming bruises hurt.

Mother comes running out, sees the blood and scoops her up, all soothing pats and comforting words. They go inside and clean her cuts, mother kisses them.

Rin goes out to play again. It has all been fixed.

Rin is older now. She walks outside and doesn't notice the sun; she doesn't notice the sky or the trees. It is a beautiful day and she is still a beautiful girl, but her eyes are darker. She has to go to school, and she's forgotten how to play.

Her stomach seizes up and she doubles over, her feet catching on each other and sending her tumbling to the sidewalk. There is blood on her hands and knees, and she can taste blood in her mouth. Maybe it's from throwing up, or maybe it is from where she's chewed a hole in her lip. She doesn't care; she doesn't even see.

She cries out from the pain, and she isn't sure if she wants anyone to hear or not. If mother heard she wouldn't care; mother is at home and doesn't want her there. That house of cards toppled long ago. So she cries quietly and soothes herself, comforting herself with lies and anger.

Rin gets up and keeps walking; things are still wrong and they will continue to fall apart.

And no one cares.


	2. Baby Mine

The Cradle Will Fall

By Katia-chan

A/N: The second drabble! I feel. . . kind of proud of myself.

I don't think this one turned out quite as well as the first unfortunately, though it is a lot longer. . . but I do hope yall will still enjoy it. I really am trying to write a lot of this before the writers block kicks in again.

Thanks to Adi88 and Windswift for their wonderful and continuation inspiring reviews! They are keeping this thing alive.

Disclaimer: Denial is too a bloody damned river in Egypt, and has nothing to do with the fact that I'm pretending that I have character rights.

Enjoy, and review for the love of my health!

XXX

Baby mine, don't you cry

Baby mine, dry your eyes

Rest your head close to my heart

Never to part, baby of mine.

Little one when you play

Don't you mind what you say

Let those eyes sparkle and shine

Never a tear, baby of mine.

He looks like a little boy who has been kept inside for most of his life. Kyou's skin is clear of the bumps and bruises that come from being a young child. All his marks are on the inside. He can feel them always; long tracks made by the fire that hurts him. It's always burning, always making his insides hurt. It makes his head ache and sometimes he can't even see right.

Mother tries to help. She is always there to comfort and coo over him when the burning gets too bad and he has to hit something or yell. She tries, she really does, but it isn't enough. Her hands shake when she hugs him and her voice isn't steady when she coos over him, and so she makes the fire worse. It flares up inside of him whenever she pretends to be good.

He will explode, and so mother takes him outside to play. The wind and air does more for him than she ever could. He can feel it as he runs ahead of her.

Run along the path, up the hill, through the gardens. Keep running till his lungs hurt and he feels like he can fly. If he keeps running then he'll take off, and what will they do then? Keep going till he reaches the top of this hill, then he'll go into the air and fly away, up and up.

Away from here.

He doesn't see the little garden wall until it's too late and he topples over it at full speed. There is a bush on the other side and he falls into it very hard. The thorns bite at his skin and scratch him. He doesn't like being caught, and so he fights against the tangled branches. This makes it worse and he yells in pain and frustration. He wants out.

Mother is there in a matter of seconds, reaching in and pulling him out quickly, before he can get more hurt. And for a moment he can think she is a good mother and that she cares about him. Then, as she pretends to look at a scratch on his arm, he sees her eyes first flick to his beads. He knows she doesn't care, but she cares about keeping the bad him inside. That's all that matters to her, because she cannot love him because of the bad one. She's just like the rest of them, no matter what she tries to pretend.

He pulls from her grasp and runs for the house, and the fire roars up inside of him once again, taking something else with it.

It hurts, and yet he'll keep it burning.

Kyou has bruises now. He stopped trying to keep the fire inside, and he yells and punches when he likes. It takes nothing more than a strange glance from the right person to set him off.

Mother isn't here any longer to nurture the flames inside of him. He knows this is his fault, he knows he burned her alive. He does well enough on his own though, on his own and with the rats help. Yuki makes the fire go out of control, and it doesn't bother either of them.

He picks himself up off the ground after being once again beaten and looks up, shouting in frustration. It always goes like this, and he hates it. He's older now and no one even bothers to try and shut him up, because they don't care enough.

He goes to Kazuma later, burning and angry and hateful. The older man talks with him, tries to make him something to eat. He's not very good at managing a house, or at keeping Kyou tidy and presentable, but he's the only one who can make it stop hurting for a little while. When Kyou is with him the aches subside to a dull throb in his chest instead of the blinding pain.

They both know it's useless though. Kyou will always be angry; Kyou will never win. He's tied to the curse like the rest of them are. Yuki is condemned to be the doll on the shelf, though Kyou might not see that as a condemnation, and he himself is condemned to lose, and then to die alone after years of seclusion. Kazuma can try to help. He can make the pain barable and be there, but in the end he's as helpless as the rest are apathetic. So they'll both accept the final decision; though they hate it, because that's just what they have to do.

And the fire will continue to burn, because it's better to fight a hopeless battle than to let it die.

And they are the only two who care.


	3. Hush Little Baby

The Cradle Will Fall

By Katia-chan

A/N: After a great delay, here is chapter 3!

I blame the terrible hell that is midterms, and apologize for delays in story and writing back to people whom I owe e-mails dearly. Yes, Adi, I am taking up your policy of public service announcements to avoid neglect.

I think this is going downhill however, because this chapter represents the state of my brain, disorganized, scattered and. . . written in black ink? Yes, every last one of you has permission to shoot me now. I'm taking applications. But I hope you like this anyhow, and please show your caring by reviewing? I'm withering here. . .

Disclaimer: Too busy, no time. . . but it's still not mine.

Enjoy!

XXX

Hush, little baby, don't say a word

Mama's gonna buy you a mockingbird

If that mockingbird don't sing

Mama's gonna buy you a diamond ring

If that diamond ring turns brass,

Mama's gonna buy you a looking glass

Children tease; it's what they do. They say unkind things, but they are children, so it doesn't matter. The harsh words sit and sting for a little while, and then are forgotten when the next game of tag begins. If the child being teased tags their former attacker just a little too hard, the vengeance is accepted and life moves on.

Teasing does not bother Kisa. She has her friends, and lots of people who like her. Sometimes they say mean things to her, but she is too kind to care. The words bounce off and she continues to laugh and smile. The other kids are never truly horrible, just thoughtless. She is mature enough, even at this young age, to realize that what they say doesn't matter. She knows who she is, and that she is a valuable person. If she ever manages to forget this, Hiro is there to remind her.

Of course, she thinks, smiling, he would never tell her that in so many words, but she knows he means it. So, with all of this around her, how could she take any teasing seriously?

If she ever does, she can run home and tell mother about it. There is always a pair of arms waiting to hold her, and someone is always there to listen. She can feel safe, and she can know that when they sing the little nursery rhyme. . .

Sticks and stones

May break my bones,

But words will never hurt me,

That is true. Nothing can hurt her.

She wishes she could still pretend that it doesn't bother her.

The kids got older, and they learned how to sharpen their words to puncture through her smiles and shrugs. They have found the true pleasure in sadism, and now the teasing is not friendly or thoughtless. Now it is meant to cause her pain, and it does.

Sticks and stones. . .

She wants so desperately to forget all of them. It would be so nice to be able to just run and hide. Even if she couldn't get away forever, just for a break, just to catch her breath. She wants to go tell this to Hiro, but he's thrown in his lot with the rest of them. He's never mean, oh no, he's far too dignified for that, but he doesn't talk to her, he won't even look at her. She approaches him, and he looks strange, pale, and makes an excuse to leave. It isn't even usually a good one. She bites her lip hard when he does this, because she is sure that he hates her and is just too grown up to say it in such a petty way. She just wants someone to understand.

Sticks and stones. . .

And she's given up trying to tell anyone about it. She is too nervous around Hiro, and even mother is no longer safe. She could tell her, could spill out all the misery, but what would mother think? She has always told Kisa to be strong and stand up for herself. Could she stand the thought that her daughter disappointed her? Kisa is afraid to test this, because she can see the tiredness in her mother's face. If she disappoints her again, maybe her mother will end up like Momiji-kun's mother. Maybe she will finally give up on her and go away. That would be terrible. So it's safer not to say anything to mother.

Sticks and. . .

Even if she could work up the nerve to tell someone, mother or Hiro, there is still even that tiny part in her that is afraid, for Hiro especially, to involve them. She got hurt last time, but what if it wasn't her this time? She couldn't bear that. It would be awful.

And broken bones. . .

The words stick in her throat, glued there with the fear, and she's too tired to force them out. It's much easier not to use them. The other kids use them enough for her anyway. They don't want to hear hers, so she'll let them have that privilege. It's just too hard, and they're older now, so the teasing does matter. She can't solve this through a game of tag. . . the games just got a lot more costly.

And words will always hurt you. . .

XXX

A/N: Please. . . ? For my sanity?

TTFN

Katia-chan


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